Judgment release now that I am in 13?

[Cgriswold]

Long time lurker, first time poster Chuck...

I am in month 13 of my 100% plan. When talking with my banker last week she noted that the judgment that really threw me into needing 13 is still on my credit report as active and not released. She felt that the BK should have triggered a status change in that regard.

Can anyone chime in on that? Should I dispute either through the credit bureau or my attorney/trustee?

Thanks for any input.

Cheers,
C

[kornellred]

If by 100% you mean that all of your unsecured creditors are going to receive all of the money owed to them, then the judgment has to be a wash. The automatic stay prevents the owner of the judgment from acting upon it, and the Chapter 13 will eventually pay the debt in full. The only hitch, from the creditor's standpoint, is that you may not complete the Chapter 13, at which point the debt immediately becomes due and payable. That may cause the court to deny any motion to set aside the judgment.

[kornellred]

Oops - my response above is not completely correct. So-called "100%" plans - it just means that all payment monies go to unsecured creditors after deduction of the trustee's fee. It does not mean that a creditor will recover all of the money the debtor owes. Nevertheless, the automatic stay prevents any action on the part of creditors during the Chapter 13.

It would behoove the debtor to file for a motion to dismiss judgment after the Chapter 13 is completed.

[Cgriswold]

Thanks. Indeed, my plan as it stands does account for all unsecured monies claimed as well as trustee payment.

After more reading, I do understand i will need to wait until the plan is complete in order to file a motion to dismiss judgment.

thanks!

[parkd]

Clark: if you don't mind, why did you claim ch13 if you were on a 100% repayment plan. I am trying to figure out why people do this? What kind of debt did you have which caused you to file in the first place? Was there no way to workout a payment plan with the creditor? TIA...

[Cgriswold]

Hey Parkd,

Yeah, months..maybe even a year + of trying to negotiate a past debt ended in a judgment while i was out of the country. Sort of a perfect storm. I was late on nothing else at the time but I also could not negotiate a payment plan with this creditor. I needed the protection that a 13 offered at that point. Not necessarily the relief from the debt, per se.